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This is another video by Mollenhauer Guitars.
In this video Chris Peterson of Mollenhauer Guitars shows the completed build of the Tiger SsT KlassiK guitar, awesome guitar and great video that shows you how it works and every feature the guitar has.
Chris Peterson, Chief Luthier and guitar Tech for Mollenhauer Guitars uses the Tiger Eye SsT KlassiK to demonstrate why it’s important to have the neck fit tightly into the neck pocket. A tighter fit means more wood to wood contact, more wood to wood contact means better tone. Chris also compares the neck pocket fit of the SsT KlassiK to a similar style, popular guitar which shows how this popular guitar has a very loose, sloppy neck pocket fit. This loose fit will cause a dramatic loss of tone and sustain as well as create the potential for the guitar to go out of tune easily because if the screws are not tight the neck will actually move back and forth while playing.
This video was made by Mollenhauer Guitars, subscribe to our newsletter to get more luthery videos for free.
Mollenhauer Guitar
Today i interviewed Michael Mollenhauer, president of Mollenhauer Guitars. I found their twitter profile, then i visited their website and i absolutely loved the Mollenhauer LP (left pic) so i decided to get in contact with them.
So this are the questions and answers
Q: When did you start making each of the current range of models and has any particular one proved most popular ?
A: We started almost 4 years ago. We have a very different business model from most other boutique and custom guitar companies in the fact that we only make 6-12 of each model in any given series. This gives us the opportunity to constantly improve the guitars to better suit what the public and our customers are requesting. It also helps to add to the collectible value of each guitar. Since we stick with more traditional designed guitars all of them have proven to be popular. However, some of our more popular models include the Master Class White SsT KlassiK, Tiger Eye SsT Klassik, The Flamed Red G35 and the Flamed Blue Master Class TeleSnaZzer. Most of the TeleSnaZzers were sold out within the first month. I think we may only have one left.
Q: Are most models you custom-create with a low action ?
A: Unless otherwise requested by the customer, as in your case, we generally set up the guitars to have as low an action as possible without getting any fret buzz or hackle. Chris Peterson, our Chief Luthier and all-around Guitar Guru, does such a magnificent job on the frets and necks that our Master Class guitars have an action about 1/32 of an inch, or less, off the 12th fret with no buzzing or hackle. Just good, clean pure tone! The low action started as a matter of my personal preference. For me, the lower the action, the faster the traction. However, for playing slide the action does need to be a little higher without encumbering the player’s ability to get down and get to it when not using the slide.
Mollenhauer Headstock
Q: Space-age guitar stylist Phil Brown plays your guitars – but I hear that Three Dog Night and many other celebrities and pro players also use your guitars , is that true
A: Phil is a masterful guitar player; he’s become a great friend as well as one of our most enthusiastic artist endorsees. Yes it’s true that Paul Kingery of Three Dog Night also uses our guitars. Paul has a white Master Class SsT KlassiK that he calls “White Boy”. White Boy got a workout on their new recording of “Heart of the Blues”. You should check it out.
Jeff Cook of the Alabama Band, Jeff Watson of the Jeff Watson Band, and David Howard, Associate Prof. of Music and head of the Guitar department at Boston Berklee School of Music are also players and supporters of our guitars.
Q: Do you play guitar yourself ? What’s your playing history ?
A: Oh yes I definitely play! My playing history started at the age of 8. The Mollenhauer family has been infused with music for over 150 years. I believe it was my Great Grandfather, Edward Mollenhauer that started the Boston Conservatory of Music. I was being trained and groomed to be the next great Mollenhauer classical violinist. However by age 12 I discovered rock ‘n roll and that was the end of my violin career. I switched to drums then to bass then to guitar. In fact, in the early 1970’s I toured Eastern England playing stand up bass and guitar with a group called The Family Album. Upon returning to the US my friend Craig Mecham and I needed money for college so we started gigging as a duet all around town. We played anywhere that would pay us in cash or food. Our best gig was at the Utah State Women’s Prison. They loved us! Talk about a captive audience. Anyway, after years in various bands, I worked as a hired gun session bass player for while and I finally landed a gig as the lead guitarist and vocalist in a 10 piece show band. I did that for about 15 years. Now, I just play for fun and make cool guitars. The kind of guitars I always wanted.
Mollenhauer TeleSnaZzer
Q: The Flamed Blue TeleSnaZzer guitar has a fabulous blue finish – how was that developed ? Stage lights seem to activate the finish.
A: Well, the finish is kind of a trade secret. With all of our guitars a very interesting thing happens to them under the stage lights, they shift and change in color. I remember the first time Cory Wells of Three Dog Night played one of our quilted black G35’s on-stage. Under the lights it sometimes looked red, sometimes purple and sometimes blue. I could hear the lighting guys freaking out saying; “hey, where’d he get that red guitar, what happened to the black one, etc. It was really funny.
Q: Do you have a favorite guitar player ?
A: I have too many favorite guitar players to mention only one. Because of my classical violin and percussion background I’ve developed a very eclectic playing style and appreciation for all the great guitarists who include: Robert Johnson, BB King, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Stanley Clarke – I know he’s a bass player, Chuck Berry, Wes Montgomery, Vernon Reid, Phil Brown, Alvin Lee, Al Dimeola, Andre Segovia and that kid down the street who can totally kick my ass on guitar with his in-human liquid fingers. Actually, right now my favorite guitar player is the guy or girl who plays one of my guitars. I love them!
Mollenhauer LP
Q: What makes your guitars different or unique? What sets them apart from all the other hundreds if not thousands of guitars on the market today?
A: An excellent question and quite likely the most important one as well. Perhaps our biggest USP or Unique Selling Point is the fact that each and every one of our guitars is finished and set-up, one at a time, by an actual, real person, in this case Chris Peterson, who makes sure that the guitar is completely ready to play as soon as the customer receives it with no further tweaking, adjustments or modifications.
My biggest hot button is going into a guitar store and testing out an expensive guitar only to discover that it plays and sounds like crap! Then, the sales person tells me “oh, don’t worry about that our Tech guy will, adjust the action, set the intonation, adjust the back bow in the neck, shave, mill and crown the frets and it will only take 7-10 days and cost an extra 500 bucks”. I think all of us have had that same experience happen to us more than once. The last time it happened to me I put the guitar down, said “forget it” walked out and started my own guitar company so no one would ever have to go through that experience again.
My feeling is that if I, as a customer, am going to lay down good money for a supposedly “good” guitar then I expect that guitar to be as perfect as it possibly can be without any talk of “oh, we’ll fix that for you when you buy it”. I mean, C’mon! Would you go out to buy a new car only to have the car sales rep say something like; “Oh, did you want the brakes to actually stop the car when you’re going faster than 40 – or – “I know the steering wheel sticks a bit when you’re turning left but don’t worry, our “tech” guys can fix that for you “after” you buy the car and it will be ready for you in 2 weeks for only a small additional fee of 500”.
When one of our customers receives a Mollenhauer guitar they know that their guitar will be ready to play with no adjustments, tweaking, expense or excuses Right Out Of The Box! Just plug ‘n play, turn it up loud and annoy the neighbors.
Mollenhauer Hollow Body
Q: I heard you’ll be shooting some videos with your luthier this weekend, tell us about the topics that will be covered in the video segments.
A: Here are some of the topics that may be covered in the video segments.
How to take the rough edges off a fret
How to crown and finish
How to shave and shape a nut
How to get more wood to wood contact between neck and pocket
How to properly wind strings so they’ll stay in tune
How to discern a good guitar from a bad one
How to install tuners
There are literally hundreds of topics we could cover and review
Quilted Black SsT KlassiK
Q: Where are you based and how can readers find out more about your company ?
A: We are located on Route 66 in the fabulous and ever popular town of Victorville, CA USA
Our web site is www.mollenhauerguitars.com My personal e mail is michael@mollenhauerguitars.com Twitter ID – mollenhauerguit and my toll free number is 888 203 7119 Call today, don’t delay, the 7th caller will win a Tupperware Dalmation…but wait there’s more…….sorry, I’ve been watching to many infomercials.
That was the interview and thanks to Michael for his time, we will be receiving more stuff from Mollenhauer Guitars and this interview is just some kind of introduction for all the things we will be hearing from this guys.
Check out Mollenhauer Guitars Website cause those guitars rocks!